If I did it, anyone can do it!

Anyone who knows me knows I've never been one of those people who loves working out. It's always been hard for me to force myself to exercise. I finally decided I wasn't happy with my weight or my health. Between the end of February and the end of April I lost just about 25 pounds! I was stunned!! I was careful with my nutrition and what I ate. I cut out all sugar and ate healthy small portions for each meal (and snacks!). Along with eating well I began exercising regularly. It's the end of September and I'm still exercising regularly. This is the first time in my life that I've been so consistent.
When I started working out, Sam was living in Bluff so I decided I had to work out at home. I chose to work out during Everly's naps. Sometimes she didn't take a nap until the afternoon so I would wait no matter how long it took to get her down to work out. Here are the workouts I've done so far:


Zumba
I've always liked Zumba and I've done a few Zumba classes between high school and college. Sam bought me the tone up plus Zumba set at Costco for Christmas. Since it was Febrauary when I began my 'fitness journey' I did the Zumba workouts first. It came with weights, dvd's and a nutrition guide. It wasn't a strenuous workout so for me as a beginner it was perfect! I loved all of the dances and I felt like I got a good workout from each one. It came with two workout calendars (each 30 days) so I did both of them.

Slim in 6
Sam and I have done a few Beachbody workouts (Insanity and P90X). Have I ever finished one? No of course not. So I signed up for the free 30 day trial for Beachbody on Demand. I found this workout called Slim in 6. Since my trial was only 30 days and the workout program is 6 weeks I didn't finish the whole workout program. But I really liked this workout. I felt like it built muscle and strength with out me really knowing it. The workouts weren't too tough and I enjoyed the trainer. There was weight lifting, resistance bands and lots of moving. But unlike Insanity there wasn't crazy jumping all around and going up-down-up-down which I really don't like about Insanity. I would recommend this workout to a beginner or anyone who has been working out for a long time.

21 Day Fix
I borrowed the 21 Day Fix workout videos from my sister-in-law. I didn't follow the meal plan with the containers because I just borrowed the videos. I was still doing my own healthy meal plan that is  pretty close to what the 21 Day Fix meal plan is. Anyway, I seriously loved 21 Day Fix. I finally got in to a groove where I began to love working out! I missed working out if I missed a day. I just enjoyed this program so much. I liked Autumn as a trainer and I loved the workouts she did. Each day is different exercises. For example, there's Cardio, Pilates, Upper Body, Lower Body, Yoga, and a couple more. I felt like I was building so much muscle when I did this workout. In just a week and a half I went from doing 1-2 push-ups to doing just over 20! I felt so strong and I was excited to build some muscle. I didn't feel like there was a ton of cardio but every workout got my heart pumping and sweating. Here is a link if you want to learn more.


21 Day Fix Extreme
I also borrowed this from my sister-in-law. Again, I didn't follow the meal plan while I did this workout. To me this workout didn't feel more extreme than 21 Day Fix (except leg day!)  but that may be because I just finished 21 Day Fix twice in a row. It was still a good workout and I enjoyed the program. But I would recommend 21 Day Fix over Extreme. I just felt like I really did well with 21 Day Fix and I didn't feel the same with Extreme (although I lost five more pounds doing Extreme). To me, it really wasn't all that different from 21 Day Fix. It had the same concept with different workouts each day and it was different exercises than 21 Day Fix. Click here to learn more.

Country Heat 
Country Heat is a new Beachbody workout program, it's a dance workout. Autumn, who does 21 Day Fix and 21 Day Fix Extreme also does Country Heat. I'm just about a week in to the Country Heat program. I've liked it so far. I don't feel any strength building. It's defiantly a cardio workout. But after doing 21 Day Fix twice then 21 Day Fix Extreme it's actually very nice to have a little break and do a workout that's just silly and fun. My heart is pumping by the end and I'm defiantly sweating. I do feel like I'm getting a workout but it's not pushing me to my limit each work out. Some of the moves will make you laugh because they are silly and watching them do it on the video is funny. It's fun and I think it'd be a great workout for someone who is beginning to workout or like me, wants a break from a strenuous program, or maybe just a cardio program. Click here to learn more about this program. But if you're looking for a dance workout I'd recommend Zumba over Country Heat. I felt like Zumba was a better workout. But then again that could be because I wasn't in shape when I started Zumba but when I did Country Heat I was much more fit.